Vietnam records $2 bln trade surplus in October, lowest since May
Exports climb 10.1% in October y/y
Imports up 13.6% y/y, mostly raw materials for manufacturing
Industrial output grows 7% in Oct vs 10.8% in Sept
Export growth to be solid, led by textiles, computers - Oxford
Adds details, comments from experts
By Phuong Nguyen
HANOI, Nov 6 (Reuters) -Vietnam reported an October trade surplus of $2 billion, narrowing from the previous month as imports grew at a faster rate than exports, government data showed on Wednesday.
The Southeast Asian country, a regional manufacturing hub, relies heavily on exports for its economic growth. Shipments rose 10.1% in October from a year earlier, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said, while imports increased by 13.6%.
October's trade surplus was the smallest since May, according to GSO data. The agency said nearly 94% of imports in October were raw materials for manufacturing.
"Export growth will remain solid from resilient export growth in textiles and computers," Oxford Economics said in a note following the October data.
China is Vietnam's biggest source of imports. According to the GSO's data breakdown, as of August, Vietnam's imports this year from China reached $92 billion, up 26% compared to the same period last year. That represented 37% of Vietnam's imports this year.
For the January-October period, exports rose 14.9% from a year earlier to $335.59 billion, while imports were up 16.8% to $312.28 billion, the GSO said.
Industrial production gained 7.0% in October from a year earlier, slower than the 10.8% growth the previous month, which Oxford Economics said could reflect the impacts of Typhoon Yagi, which wreaked havoc in Vietnam in September.
Last month, the prime minister said the government wanted to drive economic growth above an expected rate of 6.8% to 7.0% this year. In the September quarter, annual growth hit a two-year high of 7.4%.
The consumer price index rose 2.89% in October from a year earlier, below the government's cap for 2024. It was up 0.33% on the previous month.
Standard Chartered in a note on Tuesday said that amid the ongoing upward trend in inflation, coupled with a likely weaker dong, the central bank could raise interest rates by 50 basis points in the second quarter of 2025.
($1 = 25,380.0000 dong)
Reporting by Phuong Nguyen; Editing by John Mair, Martin Petty
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